International Ballet Stars Come Together For Dance For Ukraine at the London Palladium

Ukrainian born dancer and former star of The Royal Ballet Ivan Putrov has announced Dance for Ukraine at The London Palladium on Sunday 18 February 2024, following the success of 2022's gala that raised over £160,000 net for the Disaster Emergency Committee's Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal.

Bringing together a cast of international ballet stars, this year's Dance for Ukraine comes ahead of the second anniversary of Russia's illegal invasion and ongoing war. This special benefit gala will raise much needed funds to support young artists and culture in Ukraine, where ballet is centrally important.

The evening will see former Principal of Bolshoi Ballet and current Principal of Dutch National Ballet, Olga Smirnova, make her first performance on a UK stage since leaving Russia in protest of the invasion at the onset of the war. Continuing her ongoing support of Ukraine following performances in galas in Hamburg and Copenhagen.

Dance for Ukraine will also feature stars from The Royal Ballet and other leading UK companies including Principals of The Royal Ballet Marianela Núñez, William Bracewell and Matthew Ball. Lead Principals Emma Hawes and Sangeun Lee will also perform. 

Alongside Ivan Putrov and soloists of the Ukrainian National Ballet, dancers from Ukraine include Junior Soloist Vsevolod Maievskyi and Artist of The Royal Ballet Marianna Tsembenhoi. Renowned Ukrainian pianist, Sasha Grynyuk, will also perform alongside mezzo-soprano Kseniia Nikolaieva. Further casting and repertoire to be announced shortly.

Proceeds from the gala will be used to provide aspiring dancers with grants towards their training to make sure the reality of war affects them as little as possible. Additionally, the funds will go to make a new ballet production for Ukrainian National Ballet of Sir Frederick Ashton's La Fille mal gardée. Having this quintessential British ballet join the repertoire of the National Opera House of Ukraine will help lift the spirits of audiences and the artists involved, the same spirit that has emboldened the people of Ukraine during the war. The rights to the ballet have been generously waived by Jean-Pierre Gasquet and the funds raised will pay for the production to be built and staged for the beginning of 2024/25 season.

Of Dance for Ukraine, Ivan Putrov said: “It is a privilege for us in the UK to bring a little light, hopefully, to the people of Ukraine. I am thankful to all the artists, creatives and organisations that have donated their services to this cause, and I am proud Olga has chosen to come to our gala in support of Ukraine and make her first appearance in London since leaving Russia. It has always been a dream of mine to bring La Fille mal gardée to Ukraine and I am thrilled it will become the first British ballet to enter the repertoire of Ukrainian National Ballet for audiences to enjoy for years to come.”

Nobuhiro Terada, Artistic Director of Ballet at the of the National Opera House of Ukraine said: “Despite this terrible war, we are continuing to perform and are striving to keep the spirits of our dancers and our audiences high. I can't imagine a more inspiring way to do this than to add this most delightful and heart-warming gem of British ballet to our repertoire. We are hugely grateful to all of those working to make this possible. We send our thanks and gratitude to Jean Pierre Gasquet, for his generosity, to all of the artists taking part and, of course, to the audience for their support.”

Internationally renowned dancer Ivan Putrov was born in Kyiv, Ukraine and trained at The Kyiv State Choreographic Institute before moving to The Royal Ballet School. Following his training he joined The Royal Ballet and was promoted to Principal after just three seasons. Throughout his career he has danced lead roles in all the classics on some of the world's most prestigious stages, winning numerous awards for his performances.

The first Dance for Ukraine, held at the London Coliseum in 2022, was directed by Ivan Putrov and the international ballet star Alina Cojocaru, who trained in Kyiv. The gala featured a huge range of world-renowned dancers and sold out within 48 hours, raising much needed funds to support those in desperate need following the onset of the war.

Dance for Ukraine is produced by the charity Inspiration in Motion (Charity number 1167669), that promotes dance and the performing arts, with a particular focus on commissioning and supporting new dance works, as well as looking for opportunities to broaden audiences for dance and support education and training.

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